Madison Dell'Aquila on the foundation of Heretica and how to force change in the Australian film & TV industry

Madison Dell'Aquila is, as her website proudly states, "constantly looking forward to challenging what people say can't be done." That mindset is strongly applied with the new platform Heretica, a website which aims to enhance the opportunities that women and gender diverse crew have on film and TV productions in Australia all the while dismantling the gender divide that exists in one of Australia's major cultural institutions. While Screen Australia has an initiative to address the gender divide in the screen industry - see the Gender Matters initiative - there's still minimal awareness of who is working within the industry who identifies as a women or non-binary. Heretica aims to address this by being a platform that provides people who wish to engage with women and non-binary crew the opportunity to make film and TV sets more reflective of real life. Having recently launched in August 2026, Heretica has already started to build an impressive array of names and creatives who are eager to start breaking down the gender division in the industry. In the last interview in our first Heretica Interviews series, and hopefully not the last, Andrew talks with Madison about the inspiration to force a change in an industry that has so often felt like it's resisted progressing into a better state of being. This is a deep interview, one that opens up both Madison and Andrew to the failings and the positive aspects of the Australian screen industry.It's been a genuine pleasure to be able to host these interviews and to share with you all just a few of the names who make up the platform of Heretica. the Curb... is a completely independent and ad free website that lives on the support of listeners and readers just like you. Visit thecurb.com.au/subscribe, where you can support our work from $2 a month. Paid subscribers get access to our monthly competitions, exclusive interviews and articles, and more.Read the other interviews in the Heretica series below:The Heretica Interviews: Sabrina Tan on their filmic journey from Singapore to Naarm-MelbourneSabrina Tan (Chinese: 陈姝颖) (she/her) is a Singaporean filmmaker based in Naarm-Melbourne. Sabrina is a multidisciplinary filmmaker who works in directing, production design, and graphic design. She is also the host of the award winning post-apocalyptic lifestyle series Wasteland Wonders, with Sabrina taking home the Outstanding EmergingThe Heretica Interviews: Téa Mancini on her journey into filmmaking through production designTéa Mancini (she/her) is a multi-hyphenate creative whose filmic body of work is growing in the realm of the art department and wardrobe, specialising in production design, while also building up a filmography as a writer and director. Téa holds a First Class Honours degree in Film, TelevisionThe Heretica Interviews: Keisha Slocomb on bringing her voice to life through filmmakingKeisha Slocomb is an emerging filmmaker who is looking to leave a mark on the world by utilising grounded performances alongside compelling visual storytelling. As a writer-director, Keisha is already hard at work on building a filmography that puts her voice front and centre while also maintaining a strongSign up for the latest interviews, reviews, and more via https://www.thecurb.com.au/subscribe/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.